We treated him and then needed him again but he couldn’t do it last week and it was the case again yesterday.”
Berbatov, signed from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer, missed the defeat by Manchester United, the victory over Slavia Prague in the Uefa Cup and last Sunday’s goalless draw with Fulham. Spurs have now equalled their worst start to a league campaign for 14 years.. City have won only two of 14 games since losing to the Hammers, who they face at Eastlands tomorrow.”We sensed they were nervous and we took advantage,” admitted Chesterfield’s match-winner Derek Niven last night.. Despite Wednesday’s second-round exit at Chesterfield extending his alarming recent record to 13 defeats in the past 16 games, Pearce retains the overwhelming support of his boardroom and, characteristically, has no intention of bowing to his increasing detractors among the club’s support, many of whom are touting Alan Curbishley as his successor.
Following a similar reverse at the same stage of the competition at Doncaster last season and, more pertinently, only one League win in five this term, the former England captain is enduring his most troubled spell since replacing Kevin Keegan in March 2005.

But Pearce will only be in danger of losing his job if he fails to oversee an upturn in results in City’s next five Premiership games.With the club heavily in debt, albeit with manageable repayments, it is Premiership survival rather than cup upsets that will influence the decision of the City chairman, John Wardle, and, as such, the impending games against West Ham, Everton, Sheffield United, Wigan and Middlesbrough are understood to be pivotal to Pearce’s future.It was against West Ham in the FA Cup last season that Pearce’s fortunes began to unravel, when defeat not only ended hopes of a place in the quarter-finals but sent City’s League campaign into freefall and talk of qualification for the Uefa Cup with it. The Israeli businessman Eli Papoushado has confirmed that he is willing to help to fund the £100m takeover of West Ham United. The property magnate, who shuns publicity, has been linked with a move by Kia Joorabchian for the Premiership club but has, until now, maintained his silence. However, in a statement released yesterday, Papoushado said: “This is to confirm that Mr Kia Joorabchian has spoken to me about leading a consortium of investors in football projects. After considerable thought, I have agreed to participate if Kia decides to go forward with any such project.”.

Stuart Pearce is entering a critical month in his reign as manager of Manchester City after the club’s latest embarrassment in the Carling Cup heightened the pressure on a man touted as an England candidate only seven months ago. The 35-year-old, one-time Derbyshire all-rounder and captain, steamed in like a player 11 years his junior – which Anderson is – to produce a blistering spell after tea.. The only unanswered question about Sussex’s ability to hold their nerve and clinch a second Championship in four seasons appeared to be over how soon they could complete the job as Nottinghamshire collapsed and, asked to follow on, then slipped towards defeat yesterday evening. Developments at the Rose Bowl made it clear that Sussex would be unable to rely on a draw to keep Lancashire in their slipstream but the Nottinghamshire fight-back that Mark Chilton and his colleagues had been hoping to see thwart the leaders’ plans fell apart as the hosts, who had been 143 for 3, lost four wickets for one run in 13 deliveries just before tea.. But he’s been patient and he’s ready for it.”There are other fighters, like Bami, who have impressive records and are feared and avoided by some higher-profile, but oddly fragile, British champions. But Bami’s case is rather extreme.Provided Bami can get to Lauri early there is every chance that he will follow Witter and the former triple world champion Ricky Hatton and beat the Italian.